


Come Inside and Never Go Away

by CPFics



Series: The Muskequeers [12]
Category: The Musketeers (2014)
Genre: Agender Character, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Community: polybigbang, Genderfluid Character, Implied/Referenced Character Death, LGBTQ Character of Color, Multi, Other, Polyamory Big Bang, Swearing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-01-03
Updated: 2015-01-03
Packaged: 2018-03-05 05:32:56
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 10,736
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3107936
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CPFics/pseuds/CPFics
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Modern AU, non-canon gender-verse. Aramis and Athos take a romantic holiday in Bruges and fall in love. With someone else.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> It is 22:58 and I just remembered I was supposed to post this today WOOPS
> 
> I'm going to submit all 5 chapters rn so if it's not complete when you start it just give it a few
> 
> Thanks to [breathtaken](http://archiveofourown.org/users/breathtaken/pseuds/breathtaken) for all the advice and picking up on typos and spelling mistakes I missed despite proof-reading it myself like 5 times :P
> 
> Title from _Faceless Man_ by Creed

"Can you pass me the adaptor?" Athos called to Aramis as their laptop started warning them of its low battery. They were tucked into a corner next to the window, in one of the few places in the room the Bruges summer evening sun couldn’t reach.

“Where is it?” Aramis replied from where ne was spread out on the bed with a book, the last rays of daylight warming nir back.

“Well, probably wherever you put it.”

"You said you were bringing it."

"No, I told _you_ to bring it!” Athos slammed their laptop shut and got to their feet, stood facing Aramis. A small part of Athos sighed in exasperation that they’d been in Belgium barely four hours and were _already_ having an argument, but then perhaps it was naive to assume that things would be different just because they were in a new country. “But as usual you were obviously too wrapped up in your own affairs to pay the slightest bit of attention!”

“I was not! I just misheard, alright?” Aramis sat upright and threw nir book aside, gesticulating passionately. “I’m sorry I’m not _fucking perfect_! Maybe if you hadn’t been on the phone to Constance all bloody morning-”

“That was about _work_ , Aramis!”

“We’re supposed to be on _holiday_!” Aramis jumped to nir feet. Nir voice had grown tight, as it always did when ne was upset, and nir eyes were beginning to shine. Athos closed their eyes and took a deep, steadying breath, mentally kicking themself for not realising how flawed that argument was before they made it. How many times had Aramis told them to switch off on days off? And how many times had they promised they would? They resisted the urge to defend themself and point out that at that point they hadn’t technically left yet.

“You’re right. I’m sorry,” they said instead, and scrubbed a hand over their face. “It’s alright, it’s not the end of the world. We can buy a new one in the morning.”

Aramis relaxed, nodded, hovered awkwardly where ne stood, watching Athos cautiously.

Athos sighed and reached out to nem, and Aramis crossed the distance between them in two strides and fell into Athos’ arms. Athos held onto nem tightly, knowing that Aramis needed this to be sure the argument was really over, that there were no bad feelings between them. They pressed a firm kiss to Aramis’ temple as ne drew back slightly, pushed a strand of hair out of nir face.

“OK?” They asked, and ne nodded. “Come on, let’s call it a day and go to bed.”

\--

“Can we climb the belfry?” Aramis asked, dragging Athos across the Grote Markt. The sun was out, bright and warm, and despite the fact that it was barely ten o’clock, the Markt was a hive of activity. A small flock of pigeons scattered as Aramis hurried past. Athos groaned and pulled nem to a halt.

“Aramis, the queue goes on forever. Our feet’ll be tired before we even reach the bottom step.”

“Ugh, you’re no fun! Come on, I bet the queue’s moving faster than you think. And the view will definitely be worth it.”

Ne turned to Athos with pleading eyes and Athos sighed, grudgingly allowing Aramis to drag them to the back of the queue, nir daisy-print summer dress swinging around nir thighs.

“Didn’t I say it would be worth it?” Aramis asked almost an hour later, when they’d finally reached the top, and ne wrapped nir arms around Athos’ waist from behind, rested nir chin on their shoulder and followed their gaze out over the city.

“Yes, you did. And you were right.” Athos leaned their head against Aramis’.

“I’m always right,” ne replied, pulling them closer against nir chest. 

“Only about fun-related things,” Athos insisted, and Aramis nipped their earlobe in protest. Athos chuckled, looking down on the Markt and trying not to think about how high up they were, watching the tiny figures criss-crossing over it.

“We should do a carriage ride this evening,” they said. “Maybe after dinner.”

Aramis kissed their shoulder.

“OK. We’ll do that. Seen everything you want to from up here?”

“Yeah.”

“Come on, then. Let’s go have a look around down there.”

They reached the bottom of the stairs and emerged back into the Markt. Aramis sniffed thoughtfully and peered down a side-street to their right.

“They’re selling waffles,” ne said, and Athos could tell from the suggestion in their tone that it was more than just an idle observation.

“You’ve only just had breakfast.”

“But waffles, Athos!” Aramis grabbed both of Athos’ hands, swung them from side to side, and put on nir best pleading expression. “Actual Belgian waffles in Belgium! And we have just done a fair amount of physical activity. _And_ this is fun-related, which means I’m right. Come on, Athos, _pleeeeease_?”

Athos sighed, shaking their head fondly and trying in vain to hold back a smile. It was a weak argument, but they were never able to resist Aramis when ne was in a mood like this. And they supposed it made a change from Athos always taking charge at work. 

The two of them found a bench in the Markt and ate their waffles there, watching the carriages come and go. Once they’d finished, they wandered through the Berg to the river, took a selfie at the most photographed point in the city, then flopped down next to each other on the grass between the gazebo and the lake in Astridpark.

“Who’s Koningin Astrid?” Athos asked, remembering the name on the statue they’d passed on the way in. “It’s a weird name.”

“Mm, Koningin sounds more like a surname than a first name,” Aramis agreed, tapping it into nir phone. “Oh, it looks like it’s a title. I think it means ‘queen’. Here we go: ‘Astrid of Sweden, nineteen-oh-five to nineteen-thirty-five, was Queen consort of the Belgians as the wife of King Leopold the third. Her grandson, Philippe, is King of the Belgians.’ She helped the poor and stuff, apparently.”

Aramis put nir phone back in nir pocket and tucked nir head against Athos’ chest.

“Thank you for organising all this,” ne said. “I’m sorry I still managed to mess it up by forgetting things.”

“Hush,” said Athos, frowning - they thought they’d been clear that they’d forgiven that the previous evening. They pressed a kiss against the top of Aramis’ head. “Don’t worry about it - it’s forgiven, it’s in the past. But thank you for reminding me we need to stop in at the supermarket before we head back.”

Aramis huffed a laugh against their chest and Athos ran a comforting hand up and down nir arm.

In the afternoon, they visited the windmills and wandered through the city. Just as the sun was beginning to dip behind the buildings, they made their way back to the Markt. They hesitated for a moment, debating whether to join the queue for the carriage tours or get dinner first. Their decision was made for them when one of the drivers, clutching a flask in one hand and apparently on a break, called over to them:

“You folks looking for a lift?” He had a native London accent, Athos noted, and they and Aramis nodded and headed over. His horse, a gorgeous roan Belgian draft, was standing peacefully with one hind leg cocked. Its mane was plaited with colourful ribbons and flowers, which Athos hadn’t seen on any of the other horses.

“Those people have been queuing longer…” Athos said hesitantly, gesturing to the queue.

“Yeah,” the driver said gruffly, stuffing his flask back under his seat. “But you’ll be lucky if any of the others’ll take you, I’m afraid. And my English is better than any of theirs.” He added with a wink.

Athos turned to Aramis, who smoothed nir skirt subconsciously and cast a nervous glance at the line of other carriages and punters. Ne turned back to Athos and shrugged, nodding for them to go ahead. Athos looked back to the driver, who leaned down and held out his hand to Athos.

“Porthos. He.”

Athos stared in surprise for a moment, then caught themself and smiled.

“Athos. They,” they said, shaking Porthos’ hand. “And this is my partner, Aramis.”

“Ne, nem, nir,” Aramis added, cheerful again as ne shook Porthos’ hand.

“Nice to meet you both. Climb on up.”

Porthos drove them around the city, pointing out the sites and explaining their history, and filling in the less interesting areas with friendly chitchat. He told them how he’d left England three years before and decided to do something with his French and German degree. He’d spent the first few months living off the remains of his savings and teaching himself Dutch and the history of Bruges, then applied to be a carriage driver at the first opportunity.

“What about you two, then?” he asked when they paused for a while near the river. “How do you spend your days?”

“We work together,” said Aramis. “At a private security firm.”

Porthos raised an incredulous eyebrow at them.

“You’re bodyguards?”

Athos smiled. Neither of them were huge, or even particularly tall, and they were sure Porthos would tower over them both by several inches if he were standing.

“Aramis is much stronger and faster than ne looks,” they said, throwing a smirk in Aramis’ direction.

“And Athos here doesn’t need to be fast or strong,” Aramis shot back, grinning. “Their glare works better than a taser at keeping people away.”

“Is that right?” Porthos said with a grin, shooting a wink at Athos. Athos, to their mortification, felt heat rising in their cheeks, and only managed to hold their own smile for a few moments before they had to look away.

Porthos chuckled and began to drive the carriage on again until they arrived back at the Grote Markt. 

“That’ll be twenty-five euros, then, please,” he said once he’d pulled up. Athos raised an eyebrow.

“That’s not what we were told before,” they said.

“Special reduced price for being such great customers. I can afford it, don’t worry.”

“Make it thirty,” Athos said, handing over three crisp ten-euro notes.

“If you insist,” he said as he slipped the money into his jacket. “Enjoy your evening. If you’re looking for dinner, I recommend that place there.”

They’d barely climbed out of the carriage before the next punters began crowding up to it, asking Porthos for a ride.

“You fancy him!” Aramis cooed as they took their seats in the restaurant and the waiter laid menus in front of them.

“He is not… unattractive,” Athos conceded. Aramis scoffed.

“Please! I’ve never seen you act like that around anyone except me. You blushed, Athos. You _actually_ blushed!”

“What are you having?” Athos asked in a desperate attempt to change the subject. Aramis simply responded with an exasperated look.

“I think he likes us too, you know,” ne said. “He did give us a fourteen euro discount _and_ didn’t charge us for the commentary.”

“Aramis, if you want to try to sleep with Porthos before the week is out then by all means go ahead. You know you don’t need to ask my permission.”

Aramis sighed heavily and ne sagged in nir chair.

“I don’t want to sleep with Porthos.” Athos gave nem an incredulous look. “Well, OK, no, that’s not strictly true. But I don’t _just_ want to sleep with Porthos. If you like him too, then… well, then I’d rather have both of you. Together.”

Athos held nir gaze for a long moment before they dropped their eyes back to the menu in front of them to avoid Aramis’ pleading look.

“Yes. Well. It’s a lot easier for you.” They knew Aramis was well aware that they’d never desired anyone before they’d met Aramis, or since, until they’d met Porthos. Surely ne could understand that this was difficult for them.

Aramis gently pulled the menu away from them and lay it aside, took both their hands in nirs, nir eyes wide and compassionate.

“Is that not all the more reason to act on this, then?” ne asked softly. “You don’t need to deny yourself, Athos. You’ve never asked it of me and I would never ask it of you. And you won’t have to go through any of this alone. I’ll be here the whole time.”

Athos reclaimed one of their hands and rubbed their face. It wasn’t as if they’d never thought about this. They and Aramis had discussed it, even, Aramis keen to make sure Athos knew that if they ever found themself attracted to one of nir partners ne would always be willing to have them join in. But they’d never expected it to actually _happen_. Still, they could feel themself relenting. They did want this, after all, but they were so unused to having these feelings for anyone other than Aramis that they didn’t really know what to do with them. It all felt so unfamiliar and, frankly, terrifying. 

They took a deep breath.

“I’ll think about it,” they said, and Aramis face split in a grin and ne kissed Athos’ knuckles. “ _But_ , don’t get your hopes up too high. This is a million miles outside my comfort zone.”

“I know,” ne said, pressing their knuckles to nir lips again, nir stubble tickling their fingers. “I love you.”

\--

Athos lay awake for a long time that night, with Aramis sprawled across their chest, and rubbed their palm in circles over nir back. They sighed heavily, and Aramis stirred, propping nemself up on one elbow.

“Sorry,” Athos said, but Aramis shook nir head.

“What’s wrong, sweetheart?” ne asked, tracing a fingertip along Athos’ jaw. Athos reached up to take hold of their hand, and kissed it.

“I am… attracted to Porthos, and I would like to sleep with him, and I’d like to give you this, but… it’s such a big thing for me. I’m not used to having feelings like this for anyone other than you and it all just seems kind of…” They tailed off, unable to put it into words. Aramis nuzzled their neck.

“I won’t pretend to understand, but it’s fine. Whatever you decide, it’s fine. I don’t want you to stress over this, I don’t want you to feel pressured into anything.” Ne shuffled up the bed a bit and pulled Athos close to nir chest. “Get some sleep, love.”


	2. Chapter 2

Athos slumped onto the sofa with an exhausted sigh and Aramis dropped next to them, laying nir head and shoulders on their lap. They were both exhausted. They’d spent the day visiting museums; their feet were aching and their minds were stuffed.

“Have you thought any more about Porthos?” Aramis asked hopefully. Athos sighed with frustration, letting their head fall back against the back of the sofa. They had thought about it. In fact, it had been weighing on their mind all day, growing heavier by the hour.

“Yes, Aramis, I have, and I promise when I reach a conclusion I’ll let you know. Please stop pushing.” They heard Aramis huff from their lap.

“I don’t see what’s taking so long. It’s not like we’re going to jump him in the street. We’re gunna ask him out for dinner or whatever first. It’s only a date.”

Athos knew it was the fatigue that was making them both short-tempered and that they shouldn’t rise to it, but Aramis’ tone made them defensive.

“Yes, but I’ve never _asked_ anyone on a date before. I’ve never been on a date except with you! This is all new and frightening from where I’m sitting!”

“For crying out loud, Athos, you don’t even have to _do_ any of the asking! All you have to do is turn up, if you can’t handle the rest of it. Why do you have to go around acting like such a fucking virgin about it all?” Ne pulled nemself to nir feet with another huff and strode to the door. “I’m going for a walk. Don’t follow me.”

Athos slumped forwards and held their head in their hands as the door slammed shut behind nem. Aramis’ words had hurt, and it made Athos realise for the first time just how much Aramis wanted this for both of them. They took a few steadying breaths before they headed out after Aramis, ignoring nir instructions, knowing that there was every chance Aramis would spend the whole night outside if they didn’t find nem and clear the air, reluctant to return without knowing they were both ready to talk. Outside, though, Aramis was nowhere to be seen, and in the unfamiliar city, Athos had no idea where ne might be.

They sank onto a bench, ignoring the people milling around them and the sound of approaching hoofbeats. When the noise stopped in front of them, though, Athos looked up. The black horse was unfamiliar, but from the carriage, Porthos was smiling gently down at them.

“I’m just getting off for the evening,” he said, “but I’m sure ol’ Duke here won’t mind a short trip to somewhere quiet, if you wanna talk about it?”

Athos hesitated for a moment, then nodded, allowing Porthos to pull them up into the front seat next to him. He drove them to a place near the river, steered them off the road and onto the wide cobbled walkway alongside it.

“So what’s happened?” he asked, throwing one arm over the back of the seat so that it lay along the back of Athos’ shoulders. Athos couldn’t bring themself to move away. “Why were you sitting back there looking like a kicked puppy?”

Athos sighed and looked at their hands in their hands in their lap, weighing their words carefully.

“Aramis and I were discussing a mutual friend. Aramis is keen to… move our relationship with this friend to another level, so to speak, and I am not opposed to this but… before I met this person I had never had feelings for anyone besides Aramis, and I wanted more time to consider exactly what those feelings were, what with them being so unfamiliar. Aramis was… frustrated by my reticence.”

They finally looked up at Porthos, whose expression was sympathetic. They winced as they remembered the rest.

“And now Aramis has stormed off somewhere and I haven’t got the first idea where to look for nem, and ne’ll probably stay out here all night if I don’t find nem.”

They felt tears pricking their eyes and hurried to wipe them away, feeling embarrassed. Porthos moved his arm to encircle their shoulders properly and drew them closer.

“Hey,” he said gently, “s’alright. Lucky for you I know this city like the back of my hand, and I think you must know Aramis pretty well, so between my knowledge of Bruges and your knowledge of Aramis I think we might just be able to find nem, don’t you?”

Athos took a deep breath as Porthos’ words sunk in, and they felt themself calming. They nodded and sagged against him.

“There we go,” he said, pulling them into a tight hug. Athos wrapped their arms around him and pressed close, breathing steadily as the last of the anxiety left them. Porthos squeezed them back and dropped a kiss on their head. Athos froze. Porthos pulled back at once.

“Sorry, was that-? I didn’t-” he swallowed. “I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable, I’m so sorry.”

Athos stared at him, startled. He looked mortified. But it hadn’t been _unpleasant_ , Athos realised, now that they thought about it. It hadn’t been the kiss itself which made them freeze, but their reaction to it. The fact that it had made them want to turn their face up towards Porthos’ so that it had landed on their lips, not their head. Their feelings were much clearer, all of a sudden: they knew what they wanted.

Porthos opened his mouth to say something else, but before he could, Athos surged forwards to bring their mouths together. They were nervous - terrified to the point of shakiness, in fact - and it was sloppy, but after a moment’s shocked stillness, Porthos raised a steadying hand to their cheek and kissed back, and it all fell into place.

After a few moments they broke apart, and Athos stared at Porthos wide-eyed, amazed by their own audacity. Porthos chuckled. His hand still cupped Athos’ jaw, and he traced his thumb over their cheekbone.

“Alright?” he asked. They took a shaky breath and swallowed.

“Yeah. Yes.” They nodded and cleared their throat. “Yes.”

Porthos chuckled again and pressed another gentle kiss to their forehead. Athos’ eyes fell shut despite their best efforts.

“Where does Aramis usually go for peace and quiet when you’re at home?” Porthos asked. Athos fought to get their thoughts back in order, cleared their throat again.

“Um, church, usually.”

“Have you seen any churches while you’ve been here?”

“I don’t know. Aramis will have noticed them if we did, but I don’t usually pay much attention to them.”

“Why don’t you tell me everywhere you’ve been and we’ll see if we can’t work it out, eh?”

Athos told him, listing all the places they remembered visiting in the last few days, and Porthos listened thoughtfully. When they’d finished, he nodded.

“OK, I think I might know where ne’s gone. Luckily it’s not far.”

Porthos drove them round to a church close to the Grote Markt, and now they saw it, Athos did remember passing it several times. The door was open and there were lights on inside, and Athos could make out Aramis sitting in one of the pews near the front. They turned to Porthos.

“Thank you,” they said, and Porthos smiled and shrugged one shoulder in return. “About-”

Porthos held up his hand.

“Aramis needs you now. Go to nem, sort this out. I’m not working tomorrow, but I’ll be around. Find me, and we’ll talk then. All three of us.”

Athos nodded and hugged Porthos. Porthos kissed their cheek.

“Go on,” he said, clapping them on the shoulder and giving them a gentle push. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Athos stepped down from the carriage and walked towards the church as Porthos drove away. The carpet muffled their footsteps, but Aramis still heard them and turned as they approached. As soon as ne saw them, ne leaped up and rushed over to them. Athos welcomed nem into their arms.

“I’m so sorry,” ne said into their shoulder. “What I said, it was so bad. It was so unfair. I’m so sorry.”

“It’s OK,” they said, holding nem tightly. “We were both tired.” Aramis laughed.

“You managed to stop short of insulting a fundamental part of who I am, though,” ne said.

“I kissed Porthos,” they blurted out, and suddenly felt nerves erupt in their stomach. They didn’t know how Aramis would react: ne had said ne would be fine with Porthos and Athos being together, but ne always reacted unpredictably to surprises. When ne pulled back, though, the only emotion on nir face was confusion.

“When?”

“Just now. He helped me find you.”

Aramis stared for a second longer, then his mouth opened into a grin.

“Athos, my dear, you are full of surprises. Is he still here?”

“No, he said he’d be around tomorrow, and we should find him and talk then.”

Aramis pulled Athos towards nem and captured their mouth in a passionate kiss, nir arms wrapping around their waist as if ne never wanted to let them go again.

“Come on, let’s go,” ne said when ne eventually pulled back, “before I do something entirely sacrilegious.”

When they get back to the hotel room, Aramis all but pushed Athos through the door, crowding them back towards the bed until they fell backwards onto it.

“I love you,” they whispered into nir ear as ne kissed their throat. Aramis hummed in agreement.

“You’re so brave,” ne said, tracing the line of Athos’ jaw with the tip of nir nose. “I bet that was the bravest thing you’ve ever done, kissing Porthos. But you did it anyway. My brave, brave love.”

Athos whimpered and tightened their arms around Aramis’ shoulders, momentarily overwhelmed by the emotional rollercoaster the past hour had been. Aramis rolled to the side and pulled them close to nir chest.

“Ssh, it’s all over now. I’m here.”

Athos clung to nem for a moment, then pulled back and kissed Aramis hard, rolling again until they were on top of nem, and they felt Aramis grin into the kiss, felt an answering warmth spread through their veins as they pressed closer. They slid their hands up under nir dress and pushed it over nir head. Aramis tossed it away from nem, nir cock straining against nir knickers.

“Want you inside me,” Athos breathed into nir ear, dragging their nails along the line of nir erection through the silk, and Aramis moaned, pushing into Athos’ hand.

“Mm, yes. Please.”

Athos drew back to rid themselves of their own clothes, while Aramis shimmied out of nir underpants and crawled across the bed to dig in nir suitcase for condoms and lube. Ne rolled the condom on and held the lube out to Athos as they crawled back onto the bed to straddle Aramis’ thighs.

“Get yourself ready for me, darling,” ne said.

Athos coated one hand in lube and reached back behind them, opening themself up with their fingers. The other hand was braced against Aramis’ shoulder to steady themself. Aramis’ hands roamed over their torso, blunt nails trailing over their nipples and ribs, making them gasp. Then ne dragged nir hands down over Athos’ hips and thighs, avoiding their cock by mere centimetres, and Athos whined.

“Ssh, love, be patient,” ne cooed, sliding nir hands back up and reaching around to press a finger into them alongside their own. “Hmm, I think you’re ready, don’t you?”

“Yes. Ah - please. Aramis.”

“OK, it’s alright. You’re doing so well. Here, slick me up.” Ne poured more lube into Athos’ hand, which they spread over nir cock. Aramis arched under their touch. “Now, Athos, go on.”

Athos carefully slid themselves down onto Aramis, then stopped, breathing heavily, one hand still braced on nir shoulder. Aramis reached up and pushed their hair out of their face.

“Alright?” ne asked, and Athos nodded, bending down to kiss them as Aramis wrapped nir arms around their neck and began to thrust into them.

“Just think,” ne continued in a low whisper when Athos broke the kiss to rest their forehead against nir neck, “we might be doing this with Porthos soon. Would you like that - to have him inside you? Or maybe he’ll let you suck his cock, maybe he’ll fuck your mouth and come all over your face while I fuck him from behind.”

Athos’ head almost started spinning at the wave of arousal that hit them at Aramis’ words. They moaned against Aramis’ shoulder, their hands fisting in the sheets. Aramis could dom with the best of them, but ne was slightly smaller than Athos, and the thought of Porthos towering over them, all that muscle and strength, was nearly too much.

“Is that what you want? You want him to use you? You want those huge hands on your dick and in your arse?”

“Fuck,” Athos sobbed, shuddering with the need to find release. Finally, Aramis reached down between them and wrapped nir hand around their cock.

“Are you gunna be this good for him? Look at you: so good, so beautiful, so brave. Are you gunna show him how gorgeous you are when you come?”

Aramis was thrusting harder and faster now, nir hand moving on Athos’ cock in time with nir hips. Athos was barely able to gasp out an answer before they were coming over Aramis’ hand and belly, and Aramis stroked them through it, arching again underneath them with a moan. Ne rolled them both over, Athos boneless and pliant beneath nem, as ne brought nemself to a climax inside them.

Ne pulled out, tying off the condom and throwing it with perfect aim into the bin, before stretching nemself out along Athos’ side with one arm thrown over their chest and the other pillowing nir head, and their legs tangled together. Athos sighed and tucked their head under nir chin. Their eyes dropped closed to the feeling of Aramis’ breath in their hair and the gentle pressure of nir breathing against their side.

“Good?” Aramis asked, and Athos hummed contentedly. Ne pressed a gentle kiss to their temple. “I’m going to get cleaned up, you coming?”

Athos sighed regretfully but nodded, taking a moment to yawn and stretch. Aramis helped them up and led them to the bathroom. It was a tight fit for both of them in the shower, but they managed, gently wiping away the mess they’d made and lathering shampoo in each other’s hair, swapping lazy kisses and casual touches.

They dried themselves only half-heartedly before they stumbled back into bed together, curling against each other and pulling the duvet over the top.

“Love you,” Athos mumbled as they cuddled closer to Aramis.

“Love you too,” ne replied, though ne was fairly sure Athos was already asleep.


	3. Chapter 3

Athos woke the next morning to find Aramis already awake and watching them affectionately, nir hair an untamable mess from being slept on wet. They expected theirs was in much the same state.

“Morning, gorgeous,” Aramis said when they blinked their eyes open, leaning forward to greet them with a gentle kiss. Athos suddenly remembered what day it was and what they were going to do, and their stomach clenched with nerves. Aramis obviously sensed it and guessed the cause, because ne drew back and reached out to squeeze Athos’ hand.

“Hey,” ne said softly. “It’s alright. You still want this?”

Athos nodded without hesitation, but their eyes were wide and anxious. Aramis kissed them again.

“There’s nothing to worry about,” ne said. “Come on, help me find something to wear.”

Aramis rolled out of bed and immediately began laying out outfits on the bed. Athos pushed themself up onto one elbow so they could see.

“This one,” they said, reaching out to indicate a little black dress that was one of their favourites, and that they knew Aramis loved as well.

“Yeah?” Aramis asked, looking pleased, and Athos nodded. “I think so too.”

Ne reached over to kiss Athos again as ne gathered nir clothes back into nir suitcase, before pulling out nir best set of underwear and a pair of bra inserts. Athos rubbed their eyes with the back of their hand before they rolled out of bed too, pulling on their smartest jeans and a black button-down shirt.

Aramis tutted as they began to tuck in their shirt, batting their hands away. 

“Allow me,” ne insisted, carefully tucking it in and doing up their trousers, before rolling up their sleeves. Athos let themself be fussed over.

At last Aramis took a step back, straightened Athos’ collar and plucked an invisible - to Athos, at least - piece of lint from their shoulder.

“All done,” ne said brightly, patting their chest.

It was Wednesday, and the Markt was full of stalls selling fruit, bread, cheese, and other delicious-looking treats. Athos and Aramis had a good look around, picking up some bread, cheese and salad to have for lunch over the next few days. They dropped the stuff back at their hotel, then returned to the Markt to decide what to do for the rest of the day. They found Porthos sitting on one of the benches below the belfry, looking gorgeous in a tight t-shirt and jeans. He smiled and stood up as they approached.

“Morning,” he said. “You both look amazing.”

Athos found their voice had stuck in their throat and they were sure they were staring blankly, but they weren’t sure how to fix it. Luckily, Aramis was much better at this sort of thing.

“You’re not so bad yourself,” ne said. “Shall we go somewhere for lunch?”

“Sure,” said Porthos. “I know somewhere we can go.”

He put a heavy hand on Athos’ shoulder to guide them away from the Markt, and they felt immediately comforted. Porthos led them to a quiet café down a narrow cobbled street and held the door open for them. He smiled reassuringly at Athos as they passed, and they just about managed to muster a smile back. 

They ordered coffee and a sandwich each and sat down at a small circular table in the corner of the café, equally spaced around its circumference.

“Presumably Athos told you what happened last night, then?” Porthos asked after only a moment’s silence. Athos and Aramis both nodded. “So where do you want to take it from here? Obviously you’re only here for a few more days, so…”

“So we’d like to make the most of the time we’ve got,” said Aramis. “And if it goes well, we would… like to stay in touch.”

Porthos turned to Athos.

“I agree,” they said.

“Good,” he said. “Because you should know I’m not the kind of guy who falls into bed with anyone who makes eyes at him just so they can add a bit of excitement to their holiday with a quick fuck.”

“Quite understandable,” said Aramis. “Nor would we expect that of you, handsome though you are. Provided we all get along, I have no intention of limiting this to the duration of our holiday.”

“Nor I,” Athos added.

They finished their lunch and Porthos treated to them to a tour - on foot - of some of the city’s hidden gems. They were near the Minnewaterpark when he stopped.

“My flat is near here,” he said. “Would you like to come in for a drink or something? There’s not tonnes of space, but…”

“We’d love to,” said Aramis.

Porthos’ flat was above a lawyer’s office, and sure enough it was fairly small - just a kitchen/living room, a bedroom and a bathroom. However, Porthos did not appear to have many possessions, and every surface was impeccably tidy, so that it did not feel cramped or cluttered.

While Porthos set about pouring them all drinks, Athos wandered over to the bookcase in the corner and examined its contents. There were quite a few about Bruges, of course, several about horses and driving, and a number with titles like _Teach Yourself Dutch in Thirty Days_ , but the rest of the books covered such a wide and varied number of subjects - both fiction and non - that it was impossible to tell where Porthos’ main interests actually lay.

They jumped as a hand came to rest on the small of their back, and turned to see Porthos smiling down at them, holding a glass of lemonade, which he pressed into their hand.

“Thank you,” Athos said.

“You into reading too?” Porthos asked, and Athos nodded.

“You have a lot of very different books,”

“Eh, everyone needs a hobby. Any catch your interest, you can borrow them, if you like.”

Aramis appeared on Porthos' other side.

"I hate to be the one to lower the tone of the proceedings," ne said, ignoring Athos' scoff, "but I was rather hoping the drinks were just a ruse to lure us back to the privacy of your flat."

"That was rather presumptuous of you," Porthos said, though his voice had dropped to a low growl that sent shivers up Athos' spine. Aramis grinned, not even pretending for a second to be cowed by Porthos' words.

Athos swallowed a mouthful of lemonade and set their glass carefully on the shelf. Porthos’ hand had dropped six inches and was now resting on their arse. Their stomach coiled with anticipation as Porthos leaned down towards Aramis, their faces mere centimetres apart. Aramis’ eyes had gone very dark.

“Why don’t you show us exactly what you were hoping for?” Porthos whispered, and Aramis’ breath hitched. Ne closed the distance between nir mouth and Porthos’, nir hands fisting in his shirt as ne desperately pulled him closer.

Porthos’ hand disappeared from Athos briefly as he hoisted Aramis into his arms, and they felt suddenly adrift, but just a few moments later it was back, curling around their wrist and pulling them through to the bedroom, his mouth not breaking contact with Aramis’ for a second. When they reached the bedroom, he deposited Aramis on the bed and turned to Athos, pulling them close to him and kissing them, and they lifted their hands to cup his face.

Athos sighed as Porthos’ fingers slipped beneath their shirt, gently raising the fabric, his palms surprisingly soft against their ribs. He splayed one hand out against their spine, holding them close, and lifted the other to carefully flick open the buttons on their shirt. As the material slid to the ground, Aramis appeared at their back, wrapping nir arms around their chest and trailing a line of kisses over their shoulder. Porthos leaned down to intercept Aramis’ mouth and Athos inhaled the scent of him - he smelled like horses and cologne and fabric softener. They could feel his warmth through the cotton of his shirt, and they wrapped their arms around his neck so that he would not draw back.

They heard Porthos unzip Aramis’ dress, and the feel of textiles against their back was replaced with familiar skin. A second later, though, Athos felt Aramis tense, and nir hands suddenly disappeared from their chest. Porthos had frozen, and Athos looked around to find his wrists gripped by Aramis’ hands, holding them away from nir body. Aramis dropped nir head onto Athos’ shoulder and took a deep breath.

“Aramis, sweetheart, are you alright?” Athos asked, pulling one arm away from Porthos’ neck to lay their hand over Aramis’ and stroke a soothing thumb over nir knuckles. Nir grip relaxed slightly.

“Sorry,” ne said. “Sorry, I just- I’d rather keep the rest on tonight, if that’s alright. I wasn’t sure how to ask and then you… and I panicked.”

Porthos relaxed, slowly withdrew his arms from Aramis’ grasp and lifted them to nir face. Aramis sighed, leaning into the touch with a regretful look on nir face.

“You still want this?” Porthos asked quietly, and Aramis’ head snapped upright, eyes wide.

“Of course I do!” ne cried, and Porthos drew a gentling thumb across nir cheekbone.

“Hush,” he said, “it’s OK. I was just making sure.” He brought his lips to Aramis’ again, and Aramis’ arms wrapped back around Athos, but lower this time, to work at the fly of their jeans. Athos slid their own hands under Porthos’ t-shirt, and he pulled away from Aramis to allow them to raise it over his head. As they tossed it away, he turned his attention back to them, combing his fingers into their hair and tracking kisses along the line of their jaw.

It was far from the rough, energetic fuck that Athos - and Aramis, based on nir comments the previous night - had been expecting. Porthos, it seemed, possessed more gentleness than they had ever believed possible. Once both he and Athos had been relieved of their trousers and underpants, the three of them moved onto the bed. He pulled Aramis on top of him, coating his fingers in lube before sliding them under nir knickers and inside nem. Athos lay alongside, kissing them each in turn as Aramis stroked their cock.

Aramis whined with relief when Porthos finally swapped his fingers for his cock, draping nemself over his chest with a satisfied sigh. In doing so ne took nir hand away from Athos, and they huffed in frustration against Porthos’ shoulder. Porthos chuckled.

“Sit up, sweetheart,” he said, gently pushing Aramis up with a hand on nir shoulder. He coaxed Athos onto his chest, to sit astride him facing Aramis, and wrapped a hand round their cock. They let out a low moan, dropping their head forward against Aramis’ shoulder, nir panting breath ghosting through their hair. Aramis wrapped nir arms around them and sank nir teeth into nir neck, drawing out another heady groan.

“Gorgeous,” breathed Porthos, his free hand sliding up Athos’ spine, and down again with a drag of nails which made them arch. They dug their own nails into Aramis’ thighs and ne hissed with pleasure.

“Athos,” ne whined. “Athos, please.”

Ne pushed their head down to nir chest, and they obligingly licked into nir bra, feeling the tip of their tongue brush across nir nipple. Aramis keened, and nir fingers tightened in Athos’ hair. They repeated the motion, scraping their nails up Aramis’ thighs to nir knickers, and Aramis tensed with a harsh shout as a dark stain spread across the silk.

Porthos did not pause his hand on Athos’ cock, but he reached round with the other to tangle his fingers in Aramis’ hair where ne’d sagged against Athos’ chest. Ne reached around them to press a finger into the crease of Athos’ arse, and they came a moment later, Porthos finally following not far behind.

Athos and Aramis carefully and sluggishly climbed off Porthos, and he rolled over to dispose of the condom and retrieve a handful of tissues for them all to clean themselves up. Aramis tossed nir bra onto the floor with nir other clothes, but kept nir underpants on, after ne’d wiped them clean. Afterwards, Porthos pulled them both up to lie at the head of the bed, Aramis almost entirely on top of him and Athos curled against their sides, and pulled the blanket over them.

“Thank you,” Athos murmured into the skin of Porthos’ shoulder, and he huffed and twisted his arm around to stroke their hair.

“You don’t have to thank me for sleeping with you, love,”

Athos just hummed and twisted their fingers into Porthos’. Porthos huffed again, but didn’t pull his hand away.


	4. Chapter 4

When Athos awoke it was still dark. Porthos’ alarm clock read four-thirty. They were curled around Aramis, who had nir back to them, one hand reaching back to rest on their knee, nir head resting on Porthos’ shoulder. Athos’ hand was still wrapped in Porthos’, and Porthos’ arm was trapped underneath Aramis’ torso. Carefully, they slipped out of bed, tucking the duvet in behind Aramis. Ne mumbled a little and cuddled closer to Porthos, but neither of them woke.

Athos made their way to the bathroom, then to the living room. There was a lamp near the bookshelf, so they turned it on and pulled out a novel, chosen at random. They leaned back against the shelves and began to read.

Porthos found them a short while later, when he emerged from the bedroom, trying to rub some life back into his arm. He sat down next to them and kissed them on the head.

“I meant it, you know, about you borrowing some. You don’t have to get them all read before you leave.”

“I know,” said Athos. “I just needed some space.”

“Oh,” said Porthos, drawing back. “Sorry, I’ll leave you to it.”

“No!” said Athos, catching his arm. “I didn’t mean- I mean- that was ages ago. You can stay. If you want. Although…” they paused. “We should probably go back. Aramis doesn’t like to wake up alone.”

Porthos smiled and helped Athos to their feet.

“Come on, then, love. You can bring the book if you like,” he said, before leading them back through to the bedroom. He climbed in and sat up against the headboard, on top of the covers. Athos climbed in next to him, and he pulled them close and held his hand out for the book.

“Here, let me see that. Where did you get to?” he asked. Athos showed him, and let their head drop onto his shoulder as he began to read out loud, one hand gently combing through their hair.

When Aramis woke a little while later, Athos was dozing against Porthos’ shoulder, and Porthos had propped the book open face down on his legs. He was staring into space, one hand still unconsciously combing through Athos’ hair.

Aramis sighed, and Porthos turned to look at nem.

“They’re so beautiful when they’re asleep,” ne said, and Porthos chuckled.

“You both are,” he said as Athos stirred against his shoulder and sat up, rubbing their eyes.

“Sorry, did I fall asleep?” they asked.

“Yes,” said Porthos, “but only for about ten minutes, don’t worry about it. Come on, now we’re all up, let’s sort breakfast. I’m starving.”

Porthos lent each of them a pair of jogging bottoms and led them through to the kitchen. He put a large packet of croissants, a selection of cereals, milk, butter, plates and bowls on the table for them, then sat down and helped himself. Aramis wriggled into his lap.

“Hello,” Porthos said, wrapping an arm around nem with a bewildered chuckle. Aramis grabbed a croissant and curled against Porthos’ shoulder as ne ate. Porthos made an indignant noise. “You’re going to cover me in crumbs!”

“Ne’s always like this with new people,” Athos explained. “You’ll have a whole new definition of ‘tactile’ by the end of the week.”

As if to prove their point, Aramis finished nir croissant, buried nir face in Porthos’ neck and wrapped nir arms tightly around his middle.

“I’m sorry to move you,” Porthos said, “but I’ve got to be at work in an hour.”

Aramis made a muffled noise of protestation and somehow managed to press even closer. Porthos smiled and wrapped both his arms tightly around nem, and Aramis sighed in contentment.

Porthos did not try to move Aramis again until he and Athos had finished eating. He patted nir leg to get nir attention.

“I really do have to get ready for work, sweetheart,” he said. Aramis sat back with a regretful sigh, tracing nir fingers over Porthos’ chest.

“I wish I’d thought to bring a change of clothes,” ne said. “I don’t really feel like wearing a dress today.”

Porthos reached up to scratch nir head, and ne leaned into the contact with a small, happy noise. Porthos laughed.

“You’re like a cat,” he said, pressing a kiss to nir forehead. “Come on, you can borrow something of mine. Don’t worry about clearing up, I’ll sort it later.”

\--

They kissed Porthos goodbye at his front door, with a promise that he’d come by their hotel room that evening to pick up his clothes, and maybe they could all go out for dinner. Athos and Aramis walked back in happy silence, Aramis leaning nir head against Athos’ shoulder and their arms around each other’s waists.

“I think I’m in love,” said Aramis at last as they crossed the Markt. Athos smiled.

“How long do you think it’s going to last this time?” they teased, and Aramis playfully pinched their side in revenge.

“A long time, I think,” ne said thoughtfully. “He’s a little bit amazing.”

“That he is,” Athos couldn’t help but agree.

\--

There was a knock on the door, and Aramis all but leaped from Athos’ lap to answer it. Athos just had time to register brown skin and tight, dark curls before Aramis threw nemself into Porthos arms. Porthos laughed.

“I brought Chinese takeaway,” he said, leaning round Aramis and holding three plain plastic bags out to Athos. “I hope that’s OK?”

Athos took the bags from him with a smile and started laying the tubs out on the table.

“Of course it is, thank you. How much do we owe you?”

“Don’t be ridiculous,” said Porthos, carefully maneuvering himself and Aramis into the room and closing the door. “It’s a gift.”

He finally got close enough to drop a kiss onto Athos’ cheek, then he sighed and looked down at Aramis, who was still clinging to him like a limpet.

“Sorry about nem,” Athos said fondly as they laid out the cutlery. “I did warn you.”

“Ne’s alright,” Porthos chuckled, hoisting Aramis into his arms. Ne wrapped nir legs around his waist and hummed happily. “Ne’s just making the most of the time we’ve got, isn’t that right?”

Aramis made a small affirmative noise.

“Well, I’m afraid ne’s going to need to make the most of the time we’ve got before the food gets cold first,” said Athos, squeezing nir shoulder, and Aramis regretfully climbed out of Porthos’ arms.

“Will you stay here tonight?” ne asked before ne let him go completely.

“Of course,” Porthos said, bending down to kiss nem before sliding into his seat. Athos took the seat on one side of him and Aramis on the other.

They ate in silence, and when Aramis had finished, ne turned in nir seat and lay nir head in Porthos’ lap.

“Hello, kitten,” he said, scratching nir head, and Aramis preened, nuzzling his stomach. “You’re gunna get indigestion lying down like that right after eating. How long was ne like this with you?”

Athos snorted.

“Six months? Maybe more. Sometimes ne still is. Usually once ne gets started ne won’t stop until ne’s forced to, by work or when I demand some personal space - although then ne usually just goes and finds someone else to cuddle. When you came through the door was the first time ne’d let go of me all day.”

“I love you,” Aramis piped up, tracing a finger over Porthos’ cheek. Porthos caught nir hand as it reached the end of his chin, and kissed the knuckles.

“I love you too,” Porthos said, and Aramis looked up at Athos, nir face split into a brilliant grin. Athos laughed.

“Ne’s not used to hearing it back so soon,” they said, reaching over to scratch nir head themself. “You’re stuck with nem forever now.”

Porthos laughed.

“I think I can live with that.”

When Athos got up to clear the table, Porthos’ tapped Aramis’ shoulder and pushed nem back into a sitting position, before leaving the table. Aramis watched him go with a pout.

“I’m not carrying you everywhere,” Porthos laughed as he threw himself onto the sofa. “If you want to join me, you’ll have to come over here yourself.”

Aramis had leaped out of nir seat and over the back of the sofa in the blink of an eye. Athos watched fondly as ne curled up against Porthos’ chest and buried nir face in his neck. Porthos wrapped his arms around nem with a chuckle and held nem close.

“Are you going to join us Athos?” he asked.

“One moment,” they replied, disappearing into the bedroom. They returned a moment later with a huge, fluffy blanket, which they draped over Aramis and Porthos. Aramis immediately curled tighter, pulling the blanket close to nir chest and humming happily. Athos climbed in under the blanket as well, sidling up to Porthos and resting their head on his shoulder. He freed one of his arms from Aramis to wrap it around Athos instead.

“Did you two meet at work, then?” Porthos asked when they were settled. Aramis looked up at Athos with wide, expectant eyes: clearly telling this story was their job.

“Yes,” they said. Aramis sighed contentedly and closed nir eyes. “Training, technically. We were paired together for a lot of the exercises, and we ended up becoming friends, seeing each other outside of work. Turned out we had more in common than we ever expected. Things just kind of… grew from there.”

“How long ago was that?”

“About three years ago.”

Athos saw Aramis’ mouth twitch upwards slightly and smirked. They were fairly sure ne knew the count to the day, if not the hour. They were fairly sure ne knew that they knew the exact count too.

“Love at first sight?”

Athos smiled and carefully lifted a stray lock of hair out of Aramis’ face.

“It’s always love at first sight with Aramis. It’s getting it to last that’s the challenge. For me?” They shrugged. “It’s hard to know exactly when I started to have feelings for nem. It took me a long time for me to recognise them for what they were, not having felt them before. If Aramis wasn’t as forward as ne is, I might still be sitting at my desk, colouring whole lines of my notebooks in with biro, wondering what on earth I was meant to be doing with myself.”

Aramis huffed from Porthos’ chest, and Porthos chuckled, low and fond.

“How long did it take you to tell nem you loved nem back?”

“Oh, months and months. I wasn’t sure I’d ever be able to. I was -” they took a deep breath - “I was married before.”

Porthos’ eyebrows shot up in surprise.

“My family… suggested it,” Athos explained. “We weren’t opposed. We were very close friends, and I’d long decided that if I hadn’t felt love or lust before then I was never going to. I was well-off, she was influential, it was a match that made sense.”

“What happened?” Porthos asked quietly.

“She took my brother out for a drive in her car one night.” They shrugged. “Reckless driving, the court said, but… I don’t know. Now I look back… she’d been wary of Thomas in the weeks before, she hadn’t wanted to get in the car, but I’d persuaded her - I’d thought she was just being stubborn, she was very good at getting her way - and now...”

Athos’ voice cracked, and Aramis reached a hand out from beneath the blankets and caught Athos’ own, making them jump slightly - they thought ne’d fallen asleep - and hugged it close to nir chest. They reached their thumb out to stroke across nir chin as Porthos tugged them closer and dropped a kiss on their head.

“Sorry,” he said. Athos shrugged again.

“It was a long time ago now.”

They lapsed into silence, and Athos felt Aramis’ grip on their hand loosen as ne fell asleep. They shifted, and Porthos held them a little tighter.

“I don’t want you to feel pressured or anything,” he murmured. “But I love you too, you know.”

Athos remembered the overwhelming panic they’d felt the first time Aramis had said that to them. They didn’t feel any of that this time, just the same soft, warm sensation they got when Aramis said it now. They lifted their face to look at Porthos, and pressed their lips to his.

“I…” they began when they parted. They tried again: “I’m rather fond of you too.”

Porthos chuckled and kissed them again.

“Go to sleep,” he said.


	5. Chapter 5

The next night, Porthos came round again, with a few books Athos had asked to borrow. He escaped being accosted at the door, as Aramis had gone out to get dinner. Instead, he was greeted by Athos with a warm hug and a chaste kiss.

“Hey, sweetheart,” he said. “How are you doing?”

“Alright,” they said. “But I warn you, Aramis might get a bit upset. Ne’s not very good at goodbyes.”

As if on cue, Aramis pushed through the door with nir arms full of pizza, which ne dumped straight onto the table so that ne could greet Porthos.

“Hey, you,” he said, when Aramis finally pulled away from him. “Let’s see what food you’ve brought us, then.”

They laid out the pizzas on the coffee table and sat together on the sofa to eat. Athos sat close to Porthos, his arm around their shoulders, and Aramis on their lap. Afterwards, they watched telly for a while, and Aramis insinuated nemself between Athos and Porthos. Ne was quieter than usual, and Porthos raised one hand to stroke nir cheek.

“Are you okay, kitten?” he asked, and Aramis sighed and pushed into the contact. “What’s wrong?”

Aramis pulled Porthos’ hand away, swung nemself onto his lap and crushed nir lips against his in one smooth movement. Porthos chuckled.

“Forward little creature, aren’t you?”

Aramis didn’t answer, just kissed him fiercely again, nir arms wrapping possessively around his shoulders and nir chest pressed flush against his.

“Want you,” ne gasped against his lips between kisses, and Athos felt heat rise low in their belly. “Want you to fuck me so hard I can still feel you when we get back to England.”

“Yeah?” Porthos asked, chuckling, and raised an eyebrow at Athos. “Will you be joining us?”

Athos hesitated for barely a moment before they nodded. Aramis immediately started scrabbling at Porthos’ trousers, but he caught nir hands.

“Bed,” he said, when ne whined.

Aramis was off his lap in milliseconds, dragging Porthos by his hand towards the bed, and Porthos barely had time to grab Athos’ hand and pull them along too. Aramis pulled Porthos up onto the bed and hastily returned to pulling at his clothes.

“Aramis, Aramis, hey, hush,” said Porthos, catching Aramis’ hands again. Ne looked up at him with wide eyes. “Slow down, sweetheart. We have all night.”

He stroked his thumb across nir cheekbone as Aramis took a deep breath and nodded. He pulled nem into his arms.

“I know you want to make the most of tonight,” he said as Aramis buried nir face in his shoulder. “But that doesn’t mean we have to rush it. Now, if you want to undress me you can, but try not to rip anything.”

Aramis chuckled and pressed a gentle kiss to his neck as ne drew back, sliding nir hands slowly up beneath his shirt, nir fingertips grazing over his ribs as ne lifted the garment over his head.

“That’s more like it,” Porthos said, tossing the shirt aside and scratching Aramis’ head. Aramis hummed happily and nuzzled his chest. Athos shuffled over on their knees and tugged at Aramis’ own shirt, and ne sat up to allow them to pull it off, before pulling them down for a quick but tender kiss.

The three of them kissed for a while longer, gradually shedding clothes, until there was nothing left to come off.

“I’ve got an idea,” said Porthos. “Athos, lie back against the headboard.”

Athos pulled themself up the bed to do as Porthos said.

“OK, now Aramis, lie on your front on top of them.”

Athos held out their arms, and Aramis crawled willingly into them, lying down on their chest. They were both already hard, and Aramis deliberately rubbed their cocks together as ne reached up to claim a kiss from Athos.

“Oi,” said Porthos, pinching the back of nir thigh. “Patience, you.”

He pulled a condom and lube out of the bedside table, and straddled Athos’ thighs, spreading Aramis’ legs either side of him. He leaned forward as he rolled the condom on, catching Aramis’ earlobe briefly between his teeth.

“So you can still feel me when you’re back in England, yeah?” he murmured, and Aramis shivered and moaned.

“Mm, yes, Porthos, please,” ne hissed.

Porthos spread lube over his fingers, and carefully pressed one into Aramis. Ne whined with impatience. Athos ran one hand soothingly up and down nir spine while the other tangled in nir hair.

“Porthos, for fuck’s sake, get on with it,” said Aramis, arching against Athos’ chest. “I want you to fucking take me, not to treat me like I’m made of glass.”

Porthos chuckled as he withdrew his fingers and Aramis made another frustrated noise. He leaned over to whisper in nir in once more.

“You wanna watch your mouth,” he said, “or I’ll have to give you something else to do with it.”

Aramis’ moan turned into a strained cry as Porthos suddenly thrust into nem. Nir fingers gripped Athos’ shoulders as ne gasped for breath, and they kissed nir head.

“Better?” Porthos asked, and Aramis huffed.

“God, yes,” ne said. “Porthos, please.”

“Until you get back to England - that’s, what? Eighteen hours from now?”

“About that,” Athos agreed.

“Hmm…” said Porthos speculatively, dragging his nails over Aramis’ buttock and making nem shiver. “I’ll see what I can do.”

He began to move, pushing Aramis hard against Athos with every thrust. 

“Oh my God,” Aramis managed. “Oh, Jesus.”

Ne reached clumsily for Athos’ jaw, pulling them into a sloppy kiss. They could feel the breath being forced out of nem with every one of Porthos’ thrusts as ne choked out a moan against their lips. They reached up to cup nir cheek, but pulled away when they felt wetness against their hand.

“Aramis, are you OK?” they asked, swiping their thumb through the tear tracks on Aramis’ face. Porthos froze, and Aramis almost sobbed.

“Fuck, don’t stop,” ne whined. “For the love of God, Porthos, don’t stop.”

“Aramis…” said Porthos, leaning forward to try to see nir face. Aramis reached for him and kissed him.

“I’m fine,” ne promised, pushing back against him. “Please keep going.”

Porthos kissed nem once more before resuming his previous rhythm. Athos, for their part, was barely holding on, the friction of Aramis’ body against theirs and the combined weight of both Aramis and Porthos above them proving almost overwhelming. Then Porthos gave a particularly forceful thrust and Aramis cried out, nir teeth clamping down on the skin of Athos’ neck, and they threw their head back as they came.

Aramis arched over them, nir face buried in their neck and their seed dripping from nir stomach. Athos reached between them and wrapped their hand around nir cock, bringing nem off with just a few firm strokes. Aramis cried out as ne came, an almost unintelligible jumble of Athos and Porthos’ names, expletives and blasphemy.

Porthos began thrusting faster as his own orgasm approached, gripping Aramis’ hips hard enough to bruise. At last he tensed and groaned, and collapsed onto the bed beside Athos, twisting to drop a kiss on their shoulder.

“Shower?” he mumbled against their skin.

“In the morning,” said Aramis, slipping off Athos’ chest and curling against Porthos. Ne wrapped nir arms tightly around his middle and clung to him like ne never wanted to let go, burying nir face in his chest.

“In the morning,” Athos agreed, pressing their face into Aramis’ hair and letting their drowsiness overtake them.

\--

“I’ll call you,” Porthos promised as he dropped them off at the airport, having decided he couldn’t tolerate the idea of them sitting on buses for hours. “Unless Aramis calls me first.”

Athos laughed, but Aramis buried nir face in Porthos’ chest.

“Aw, sweetheart,” said Porthos, when Aramis hastily wiped nir eyes on nir sleeve. He pulled Aramis close to his body as ne started sobbing, and Athos stepped over to lay a gentling hand on nir back. “Hey, it won’t be so bad. We can Skype all the time.”

“Bu-but you can’t h-hug on Skype,” came Aramis’ muffled reply. “And y-you give the best h-hugs of everyone.”

“Oh, love. You should have said sooner and I could’ve told Athos all my secrets.” Porthos said, coaxing a tremulous laugh out of Aramis. He eased nem away from him. “I promise I’ll try to visit as soon as possible, OK? Go on, I don’t want to make you late.”

Aramis nodded and stepped back, wiping nir eyes and making room for Athos to say goodbye to Porthos with a tight hug and a quick kiss.

“You look after each other now,” he said, “and I’ll hopefully see you soon.”

He pressed a last quick kiss to each of their foreheads, then turned and ducked back into his car, waving as he drove away. Athos squeezed Aramis’ hand.

“Are you OK?” they asked. Aramis wiped nir eyes again, took a deep breath, and nodded. Athos threw an arm around nir shoulders and pulled nem close. “I love you.”

Aramis looked up at them, a genuine, albeit watery, smile on nir face.

“I love you, too.”

Aramis slept through most of the return flight, tucked under Athos’ arm with nir face buried in their jumper. When they arrived, Constance was waiting for them, standing among the taxi drivers and chauffeurs and holding a sign bearing both their names surrounded by flowers and stars. She raised it above her head and jumped up and down with excitement when she saw them, and Aramis ran to her, pulling her into a tight hug.

“So,” she said, when Athos approached her at a more sedate pace, but greeted her with a wide grin and a friendly hug nonetheless, “good holiday?”

Athos cast a glance at Aramis who, they could tell by the look on nir face, was texting Porthos to let him know they’d both arrived home safely. He smiled and turned back to Constance.

“The best.”


End file.
